We are pleased to announce that Daniel Metzger has been promoted to Director of the Sabin Center’s Cities Climate Law Initiative. In this role, Daniel will continue to research legal tools that cities and other local governments can use to advance climate mitigation and adaptation. In addition to his academic research, Daniel will also work directly with city legal departments, sustainability offices, partner organizations, and the networks that connect them—providing research, resources, and analysis on the legal questions shaping the urban climate transition.

Prior to taking on this new role, Daniel served as a Smart Surfaces Fellow at the Sabin Center, exploring legal issues related to reflective and porous pavements, green roofs, solar PV, urban forestry, and other climate-responsive infrastructure at the metropolitan and community scale. Prior to that role, he was a litigator with the Southern Environmental Law Center, where he advocated for a just transition to renewable electricity generation in the Southeast. He has also served as a Climate Law Fellow at the Sabin Center, an associate at a boutique litigation firm, and a judicial clerk in the Eastern District of New York.

We look forward to Daniel’s continued contributions to the Sabin Center’s expanding work on cities and climate action.

 

 

We also welcome Hema Lochan, who joined the Sabin Center this month as a Senior Fellow working with the Renewable Energy Legal Defense Initiative (RELDI). Hema’s work will focus on advancing the buildout of renewable energy projects by collaborating with local community groups and organizations.

Prior to joining the Sabin Center, Hema worked as an environmental justice litigator for 4+ years in the Clean Energy Program at Earthjustice, where they represented directly impacted communities in both federal and state cases. Hema received their J.D. from Fordham Law School in 2021.

We look forward to Hema’s contributions to our RELDI’s growing body of work!